Lions Gate via Everett Collection
When we last left our heroes, they had conquered all opponents in the 74th Annual Hunger Games, returned home to their newly refurbished living quarters in District 12, and fallen haplessly to the cannibalism of PTSD. And now we're back! Hitching our wagons once again to laconic Katniss Everdeen and her sweet-natured, just-for-the-camera boyfriend Peeta Mellark as they gear up for a second go at the Capitol's killing fields.
But hold your horses — there's a good hour and a half before we step back into the arena. However, the time spent with Katniss and Peeta before the announcement that they'll be competing again for the ceremonial Quarter Quell does not drag. In fact, it's got some of the film franchise's most interesting commentary about celebrity, reality television, and the media so far, well outweighing the merit of The Hunger Games' satire on the subject matter by having Katniss struggle with her responsibilities as Panem's idol. Does she abide by the command of status quo, delighting in the public's applause for her and keeping them complacently saturated with her smiles and curtsies? Or does Katniss hold three fingers high in opposition to the machine into which she has been thrown? It's a quarrel that the real Jennifer Lawrence would handle with a castigation of the media and a joke about sandwiches, or something... but her stakes are, admittedly, much lower. Harvey Weinstein isn't threatening to kill her secret boyfriend.
Through this chapter, Katniss also grapples with a more personal warfare: her devotion to Gale (despite her inability to commit to the idea of love) and her family, her complicated, moralistic affection for Peeta, her remorse over losing Rue, and her agonizing desire to flee the eye of the public and the Capitol. Oftentimes, Katniss' depression and guilty conscience transcends the bounds of sappy. Her soap opera scenes with a soot-covered Gale really push the limits, saved if only by the undeniable grace and charisma of star Lawrence at every step along the way of this film. So it's sappy, but never too sappy.
In fact, Catching Fire is a masterpiece of pushing limits as far as they'll extend before the point of diminishing returns. Director Francis Lawrence maintains an ambiance that lends to emotional investment but never imposes too much realism as to drip into territories of grit. All of Catching Fire lives in a dreamlike state, a stark contrast to Hunger Games' guttural, grimacing quality that robbed it of the life force Suzanne Collins pumped into her first novel.
Once we get to the thunderdome, our engines are effectively revved for the "fun part." Katniss, Peeta, and their array of allies and enemies traverse a nightmare course that seems perfectly suited for a videogame spin-off. At this point, we've spent just enough time with the secondary characters to grow a bit fond of them — deliberately obnoxious Finnick, jarringly provocative Johanna, offbeat geeks Beedee and Wiress — but not quite enough to dissolve the mystery surrounding any of them or their true intentions (which become more and more enigmatic as the film progresses). We only need adhere to Katniss and Peeta once tossed in the pit of doom that is the 75th Hunger Games arena, but finding real characters in the other tributes makes for a far more fun round of extreme manhunt.
But Catching Fire doesn't vie for anything particularly grand. It entertains and engages, having fun with and anchoring weight to its characters and circumstances, but stays within the expected confines of what a Hunger Games movie can be. It's a good one, but without shooting for succinctly interesting or surprising work with Katniss and her relationships or taking a stab at anything but the obvious in terms of sending up the militant tyrannical autocracy, it never even closes in on the possibility of being a great one.
3.5/5
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It was a big night for Jennifer Lawrence at the 2013 GLAAD Media Awards on Saturday night. Not only did the Oscar-winning actress have the task of presenting President Bill Clinton, the recipient of the Advocate for Change Award at last night's ceremony, but she sent the Internet into a frenzy (what else is new?) when she debuted her new, short haircut.
Celebrity hairdresser Mark Townsend shared a shot of Lawrence's gorgeous new look on Instagram with the message "Meanwhile, this is happening" before she hit the red carpet for the event wearing a stunning little black dress by David Koma. The photo got overwhelmingly positive reception from fans online, who wrote messages in response like, "Crazy gorgeous" and "perfect".
Of course even if Lawrence may look a little different, she still remains her same old charming self we've all come to know and love. According to E! Online, the 22-year-old Catching Fire star had one of her trademark slip-ups on stage. Lawrence, while introducing President Clinton's award with Miramax honcho Harvey Weinstein before Chelsea Clinton introduced her father, the actress reportedly "mildly flubbed" the former President's name.
But President Clinton took the small slip-up in stride and joked, "I don't know why Harvey made Jennifer do that. She really was like 2-years-old when I became president. I met her backstage and she looked like she was touring the Museum of Natural History."
Below are more of the winners, including President Clinton, from the 2013 GLAAD Media Awards:
Advocate for Change Award: Bill Clinton, presented by Harvey Weinstein and Jennifer Lawrence
Stephen F. Kolzak Award: Steve Warren, presented by Leonardo DiCaprio and Charlize Theron
Outstanding Film – Wide Release: The Perks of Being a Wallflower (Summit Entertainment), accepted by writer-director Stephen Chbosky with Logan Lerman, Johnny Simmons and Mae Whitman
Outstanding Comedy Series: The New Normal (NBC), accepted by co-creators Ryan Murphy and Allison Adler with Andrew Rannells, Justin Bartha, Georgia King, Jayson Blair, NeNe Leakes
Outstanding Individual Episode: “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Me What to Do” Raising Hope (Fox), accepted by show creator Greg Garcia with Cloris Leachman, Shannon Woodward
Outstanding TV Movie or Mini-Series: American Horror Story: Asylum (FX), accepted by show creator Ryan Murphy
Outstanding Daily Drama: Days of Our Lives (NBC), accepted by: Freddie Smith
Outstanding Talk Show Episode: “At Home with Neil Patrick Harris, His Fiancé David Burtka, &amp; Their Twins” Oprah’s Next Chapter (OWN)
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Minus One for Team Cyr: Uh-oh, fans/shippers of the Mark &amp; Sarah pairing on Parenthood — Jason Ritter has been cast as the lead in Fox's comedy pilot Friends &amp; Family, an American adaptation of the hit British comedy Gavin &amp; Stacey. Ritter will play Gavin in the single-cam comedy, opposite the yet-to-be-cast Stacey. [TVLine]
We Didn't Mean It: Yikes — Whitney Cummings' E! talk show, Love You, Mean It With Whitney Cummings — has been canceled. The show premiered in November, with the last episode airing on Feb. 6. For those keeping track, her sitcom Whitney is still on the air. #SixSeasonsAndAMovie [EW]
He's Awake!: Hey, we never said we were above cheesy puns. Jason Isaacs, who recently starred in the canceled-too-soon drama Awake, has landed the lead role in CBS’ The Surgeon General. The pilot will center on Dr. John Sherman (Isaacs), who plays the most powerful doctor in the nation, AKA the Surgeon General. That's a whole lotta patients. [Deadline]
Killer Premiere Date: NBC's new series Hannibal is joining the Thursday night lineup, filling the canceled Do No Harm's spot. Bryan Fuller's long-awaited TV adaptation will premiere April 4 at 10 PM ET/PT. A contemporary take on the characters from Thomas Harris’ Red Dragon novel, Hannibal focuses on the fledgling relationship between FBI agent Will Graham (Hugh Dancy) and his mentor Hannibal Lecter (Mads Mikkelsen). [Twitter]
About a Boy's Girl: Minnie Driver has just joined NBC’s Jason Katims-produced single-camera comedy pilot, About a Boy. She will play the female lead opposite Bent's David Walton. The show is about the relationship between a man-child (Walton) and the young boy who moves in next door. [TVLine]
Who's That Girl... It's Zooey! Zooey Deschanel has just launched a production company with her Hello Giggles website partner Sophia Rossi, and it has already inked a two-year deal with 20th Century Fox. Deschanel and Rossi will develop new projects for the studio. [Deadline]
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[PHOTO CREDIT: Wenn]
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Tonight's episode of The Carrie Diaries introduces new faces, new locations, and new issues for pre-Sex and the City Carrie Bradshaw. Hollywood.com got the chance to screen "Dangerous Territory" beforehand as well as grill creator and executive producer Amy B. Harris all about it, so check out all the juicy scoop as well as what to expect from tonight's episode below:
1. New relationships are introduced, and they're here to stay
When a childhood friend, George, comes back into Carrie's life, it might be enough to make her say, Sebastian who? "He’s definitely someone new in Carrie’s life who’s going to be around for a nice little arc," Harris says. "I like triangles and this time there’s a quadrangle coming with Donna and Sebastian and Carrie having the possibility of George. Even though he comes from this intense world, he’s more relaxed than Sebastian. I like that about him." George, the son of Carrie's father's friend, also introduces Carrie to a side of Manhattan she has yet to see: the Upper East Side social scene. "This was a way to bring in the Upper East Side social world which was so big in the 80s and it was really its own pocket," Harris says. "Nowadays, the Gossip Girl world is all sort of merged, downtown, uptown, but in the 80s it was very much just an uptown experience to have those kind of people. I was excited to play with that."
2. Carrie's virginity: to lose, or not to lose?
Because George might be sticking around for a while, the issue of losing her virginity is introduced for Carrie. " What I love about Carrie is she actually values her virginity and thinks a lot of what that might be and who she wants to give it to," Harris says. "George, being older and from a more sophisticated world, has a different attitude about it. Some people think virginity is something to get out of the way and some people think it’s a treasured milestone mark and I like putting Carrie up against people with different points of view about it than her."
RELATED: 'Carrie Diaries' Star Freema Agyeman Hasn't Seen 'Sex and the City' Finale
3. Walt and Seth come to blows... over Mouse?!?
What could possibly drive these two mild-mannered boys to throw punches? It has a little something do with S-E-X, and you'll be surprised at the secrets that Walt, Seth, and Mouse all reveal.
4. Walt's struggle with his sexuality is going to be a long journey
Despite his experience kissing Bennett at the Halloween party, Walt is very much back together with Maggie. But just because he's hiding behind her doesn't mean his journey to discover himself is over. "It’s 2013, and that’s obviously a much better time to know you’re gay in high school for a lot of people," Harris says. " What was so compelling about telling this story in 1984, the truth is nobody was coming out in high school. When I wrote the pilot I thought he was going to come out a lot faster but then when I watched it I realized that in the time frame it’s in, it’s a very difficult thing. I wanted to tell his story in a longer, more drawn-out way because it’s the truth. I wanted that experience to be real for Walt, which is painful and scary." Harris also teased that Bennett will return, and there will "be a lot of fallout for" Maggie and Walt.
5. Larissa and Donna are going to become increasingly complicated characters.
Larissa may not be in tonight's episode, but she is going to continue to be a huge factor in Carrie's growing love for Manhattan. "For Carrie, Larissa is this role model slash cautionary tale, but she is opening up ideas and doors for Carrie that she had never thought of before," Harris says. "That’s going to become a direct conflict for Carrie and her father as the season goes on. Larissa is complicated and she’s got some of her own fears but she’s also conquering Manhattan in a way that Carrie finds very exciting." And as for Donna, Carrie's nemesis and competition for Sebastian's affections? She's going to become more and more of a complicated character and less of a one-shot villain. "Donna is going to show some surprising colors throughout the season. You’ll very much find her redeemable," Harris says. "Out of everyone on this show, she’s the only one that doesn’t lie. She’s always honest, even if it’s mean. Which it often is. You’re going to find her very surprisingly filled with heart in some upcoming episodes."
Watch The Carrie Diaries Mondays at 8 PM ET/PT on The CW.
Follow Sydney on Twitter: @SydneyBucksbaum
[Photo Credit: Patrick Harbron/The CW]
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It was the trickle of pee heard around the world. Cannes attendees were aghast and/or amused an infamous scene from The Paperboy that shows Nicole Kidman urinating on Zac Efron; this is apparently a great salve for jellyfish burns which were covering our Ken Doll-like protagonist. (In fact the term protagonist should be used very loosely for Efron's character Jack who is mostly acted upon than active throughout.)
Lurid! Sexy! Perverse! Trashy! Whether or not it's actually effective is overshadowed by all the hubbub that's attached itself to the movie for better or worse. In fact the movie is all of these things — but that's actually not a compliment. What could have become somethingmemorable is jaw-droppingly bad (when it's not hilarious). Director Lee Daniels uses a few different visual styles throughout from a stark black and white palette for a crime scene recreation at the beginning to a '70s porno aesthetic that oscillates between psychedelic and straight-up sweaty with an emphasis on Efron's tighty-whiteys. This only enhances the sloppiness of the script which uses lines like narrator/housekeeper/nanny Anita's (Macy Gray) "You ain't tired enough to be retired " to conjure up the down-home wisdom of the South. Despite Gray's musical talents she is not a good choice for a narrator or an actor for that matter. In a way — insofar as they're perhaps the only female characters given a chunk of screen time — her foil is Charlotte Bless Nicole Kidman's character. Anita is the mother figure who wears as we see in an early scene control-top pantyhose whereas Charlotte is all clam diggers and Barbie doll make-up. Or as Anita puts it "an oversexed Barbie doll."
The slapdash plot is that Jack's older brother Ward (Matthew McConaughey) comes back to town with his colleague Yardley (David Oyelowo) to investigate the case of a death row criminal named Hillary Van Wetter. Yardley is black and British which seems to confuse many of the people he meets in this backwoods town. Hillary (John Cusack) hidden under a mop of greasy black hair) is a slack-jawed yokel who could care less if he's going to be killed for a crime he might or might not have committed. He is way more interested in his bride-to-be Charlotte who has fallen in love with him through letters — this is her thing apparently writing letters and falling in love with inmates — and has rushed to help Ward and Yardley free her man. In the meantime we're subjected to at least one simulated sex scene that will haunt your dreams forever. Besides Hillary's shortcomings as a character that could rustle up any sort of empathy the case itself is so boring it begs the question why a respected journalist would be interested enough to pursue it.
The rest of the movie is filled with longing an attempt to place any the story in some sort of social context via class and race even more Zac Efron's underwear sexual violence alligator innards swamp people in comically ramshackle homes and a glimpse of one glistening McConaughey 'tock. Harmony Korine called and he wants his Gummo back.
It's probably tantalizing for this cast to take on "serious" "edgy" work by an Oscar-nominated director. Cusack ditched his boombox blasting "In Your Eyes" long ago and Efron's been trying to shed his squeaky clean image for so long that he finally dropped a condom on the red carpet for The Lorax so we'd know he's not smooth like a Ken doll despite how he was filmed by Daniels. On the other hand Nicole Kidman has been making interesting and varied career choices for years so it's confounding why she'd be interested in a one-dimensional character like Charlotte. McConaughey's on a roll and like the rest of the cast he's got plenty of interesting projects worth watching so this probably won't slow him down. Even Daniels is already shooting a new film The Butler as we can see from Oprah's dazzling Instagram feed. It's as if they all want to put The Paperboy behind them as soon as possible. It's hard to blame them.

There's an allure to imperfection. With his latest drama Lawless director John Hillcoat taps directly into the side of human nature that draws us to it. Hillcoat finds it in Prohibition history a time when the regulations of alcohol consumption were subverted by most of the population; He finds it in the rural landscapes of Virginia: dingy raw and mesmerizing. And most importantly he finds it in his main character Jack Bondurant (Shia LaBeouf) the scrappy third brother of a moonshining family who is desperate to prove his worth. Jack forcefully injects himself into the family business only to discover there's an underbelly to the underbelly. Lawless is a beautiful film that's violent as hell striking in a way only unfiltered Americana could be.
Acting as the driver for his two outlaw brothers Forrest (Tom Hardy) and Howard (Jason Clarke) isn't enough for Jack. He's enticed by the power of the gangster figure and entranced by what moonshine money can buy. So like any fledgling entrepreneur Jack takes matters into his own hands. Recruiting crippled family friend/distillery mastermind Cricket (Dane DeHaan) the young whippersnapper sets out to brew his own batch sell it to top dog Floyd Banner and make the family rich. The plan works — but it puts the Bondurant boys in over their heads with a new threat: the corrupt law enforcers of Chicago.
Unlike many stories of crime life Lawless isn't about escalation. The movie drifts back and forth leisurely popping in moments like the beats of a great TV episode. One second the Bondurants could be talking shop with their female shopkeep Maggie Beauford (Jessica Chastain). The next Forrest is beating the bloody pulp out of a cop blackmailing their operation. The plot isn't thick; Hillcoat and screenwriter Nick Cave preferring to bask in the landscapes the quiet moments the haunting terror that comes with a life on the other side of the tracks. A feature film doesn't offer enough time for Lawless to build — it recalls cinema-level TV currently playing on outlets like HBO and AMC that have truly spoiled us — but what the duo accomplish is engrossing.
Accompanying the glowing visuals and Cave's knockout workout on the music side (a toe-tapping mix of spirituals bluegrass and the writer/musician's spine-tingling violin) are muted performances from some of Hollywood's rising stars. Despite LaBeouf's off-screen antics he lights up Lawless and nails the in-deep whippersnapper. His playful relationship with a local religious girl (Mia Wasikowska) solidifies him as a leading man but like everything in the movie you want more. Tom Hardy is one of the few performers who can "uurrr" and "mmmnerm" his way through a scene and come out on top. His greatest sparring partner isn't a hulking thug but Chastain who brings out the heart of the impenetrable beast. The real gem of Lawless is Guy Pearce as the Bondurant trio's biggest threat. Shaved eyebrows pristine city clothes and a temper like a rabid wolverine Pearce's Charlie Rakes is the most frightening villain of 2012. He viciously chews up every moment he's on screen. That's even before he starts drawing blood.
Lawless is the perfect movie for the late August haze — not quite the Oscary prestige picture or the summertime shoot-'em-up. It's drama that has its moonshine and swigs it too. Just don't drink too much.
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Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23: ABC can add two more to its expanding roster of celebrities signing up to appear — as themselves — on Apartment 23. Frankie Muniz (Malcolm in the Middle) and Mark-Paul Gosselaar (Franklin &amp; Bash, but let's be real, Saved By The Bell) will guest on the sitcom, crossing paths with James Van Der Beek (who plays himself) as he attempts to stage a Dawson's Creek reunion. Muniz and Gosselaar will ostensibly be representing their old shows — whether they're aching for reunions with their former cast members is another story altogether. [EW]
Touch: Jack Bauer will get some new friends when Said Taghmaoui (Lost) joins the Kiefer Sutherland-led Fox drama as a series regular. Taghmaoui will play "a smart Jesuit priest-turned-killing machine," according to the report. Also joining the series in a recurring fashion are Adam Campbell (Parenthood) as one of Calvin's business partners and Ray Santiago (Raising Hope) as a hacker and Martin's co-worker. [THR]
FX: The cable net has picked up a 13-episode order for The Americans, a Cold War-set series about two KGB spies posing as a married American couple in suburban Washington, D.C. — and their children, who have no idea about their parents' real identities. The drama will star Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys and Noah Emmerich. [Deadline]
CBS: The Eye has optioned a television series based on a series of books by Michael Koryta about a private investigator "who finds himself in the middle of two police investigations when an old rival is brutally murdered." [Deadline]
White Collar: Pablo Schreiber (Weeds) will guest on USA's espionage hit, playing an artist suspected of being involved in large-scale forgery. [TVLine]
Pretty Little Liars: CSI's Brandon W. Jones is set to appear on the ABC Family teen soap as Andrew, a major love interest for Spencer. [E!]
Follow Marc on Twitter @MarcSnetiker
[Photo Credit: WENN]
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While recent animated blockbusters have aimed to viewers of all ages starting with fantastical concepts and breathtaking visuals but tackling complex emotional issues along the way Ice Age: Continental Drift is crafted especially for the wee ones — and it works. Venturing back to prehistoric times once again the fourth Ice Age film paints broad strokes on the theme of familial relationships throwing in plenty of physical comedy along the way. The movie isn't that far off from one of the many Land Before Time direct-to-video sequels: not particularly innovative or necessary but harmless thrilling fun for anyone with a sense of humor. Unless they have a particular distaste for wooly mammoths the kids will love it.
Ice Age: Continental Drift continues to snowball its cartoon roster bringing back the original film's trio (Ray Romano as Manny the Mammoth Denis Leary as Diego the Sabertooth Tiger and John Leguizamo as Sid the Sloth) new faces acquired over the course of the franchise (Queen Latifah as Manny's wife Ellie) and a handful of new characters to spice things up everyone from Nicki Minaj as Manny's daughter Steffie to Wanda Sykes as Sid's wily grandma. The whole gang is living a pleasant existence as a herd with Manny's biggest problem being playing overbearing dad to the rebellious daughter. Teen mammoths they always want to go out and play by the waterfall! Whippersnappers.
The main thrust of the film comes when Scratch the Rat (whose silent comedy routines in the vein of Tex Avery/WB cartoons continue to be the series highlight) accidentally cracks the singular continent Pangea into the world we know today. Manny Diego and Sid find themselves stranded on an iceberg once again forced on a road trip journey of survival. The rest of the herd embarks to meet them giving Steffie time to realize the true meaning of friendship with help from her mole pal Louis (Josh Gad).
The ham-handed lessons may drag for those who've passed Kindergarten but Ice Age: Continental Drift is a lot of fun when the main gang crosses paths with a group of villainous pirates. (Back then monkeys rabbits and seals were hitting the high seas together pillaging via boat-shaped icebergs. Obviously.) Quickly Ice Age becomes an old school pirate adventure complete with maritime navigation buried treasure and sword fights. Gut (Peter Dinklage) an evil ape with a deadly... fingernail leads the evil-doers who pose an entertaining threat for the familiar bunch. Jennifer Lopez pops by as Gut's second-in-command Shira the White Tiger and the film's two cats have a chase scene that should rouse even the most apathetic adults. Hearing Dinklage (of Game of Thrones fame) belt out a pirate shanty may be worth the price of admission alone.
With solid action (that doesn't need the 3D addition) cartoony animation and gags out the wazoo Ice Age: Continental Drift is entertainment to enjoy with the whole family. Revelatory? Not quite. Until we get a feature length silent film of Scratch's acorn pursuit we may never see a "classic" Ice Age film but Continental Drift keeps it together long enough to tell a simple story with delightful flare that should hold attention spans of any length. Massive amounts of sugar not even required.
[Photo Credit: 20th Century Fox]